Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is tapping the city’s health commissioner as the interim deputy mayor of equity health and human services.

Letitia Dzirasa served as Baltimore’s health commissioner since 2019.

In the new role, she will oversee the Mayor’s Homeless Services, African American Male Engagement, Children and Family Success and Parks and Recreation Offices.

“The focus will be on equitable distribution of services,” Dzirasa told WYPR. “We've heard Mayor Scott, talk about how important it is to be equitable, and so we’re really focused on addressing those disparities.”

Dzirasa will start the position on May 1. The role is currently held by Faith Leach.

Dzirasa is a board certified pediatrician. Before taking the role as health commissioner, she served as the health innovation officer for Fearless Solutions, a Baltimore-based digital services firm.

She ushered the city through the COVID-19 pandemic, helping the city reach some of the highest vaccination rates in the nation compared to jurisdictions of similar size.